The Main Intelligence Directorate of Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense released information about over a thousand cultural artifacts stolen by Russian forces from the O. Shovkunenko Kherson Regional Art Gallery.
The information was published on the War&Sanctions portal ahead of the third anniversary of Kherson’s liberation from Russian occupation.
During the temporary occupation of the city, Russian servicemen, guided by Russian museum specialists, systematically removed exhibits from the art museum, including paintings, graphics, sculptures, and icons. Some of these were illegally transported to the occupied territory of Crimea.
The War&Sanctions portal lists 1,233 stolen artworks, which represent only a portion of the total cultural valuables illegally taken by the Russian forcesfrom the museum.
Among them are works by Ukrainian and European artists of the 19th–20th centuries, including Peter Lely, Maria Prymachenko, Mykola Pymonenko, Ivan Aivazovsky, Serhiy Vasylkivsky, and others.
By stealing and appropriating Ukrainian cultural heritage, Russia aims to eradicate Ukrainian national identity and justify its aggression and occupation. Documenting these crimes is a crucial step toward restoring justice and holding the perpetrators accountable, the intelligence service emphasized.
Main Intelligence Directorate also recalled that the War&Sanctions portal previously published information about 178 artifacts taken by Russians from the “Stone Grave” museum in the temporarily occupied Zaporizhzhia region.
